Rotary printing apparatus



Sepf. 1', 1936.

H. P. ELLIOTT ROITARY PRINTING APPARATUS Original Filed May 12, 1953 INVENTOR fla /140w P. [LL/0T7.

ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 1, 1936 UNITED STATES ROTARY PRINTING APPARATUS Harmon P; Elliott, Watertown, Mass, assignorzto The Elliott Addressing Machine Company; a

corporation of Massachusetts 7 Application May 12, 1933,"Serial*No. 670,643

This application is a continuation in part of my co-pending application on whichmyPatent No. 1,916,564 was grantedJuly 4, 1933, and the present invention relates to removable, typecarrying sectors which may be inserted in stencil addressing machines of the type shown insaid. application and also in Patent No.. 1,909,910 granted May 16, 1933, on my still earlier application for- Addressing and printing apparatus. By

substituting such a type-carrying sector for the ink-bearing sector of theapparatus covered by my said patent, the so modified structure may be used as a little printing-press to printamessage on each of a series of postcards, or for othersimilar purpose. The type bearingsector may have metal type set removably in grooves or otherwise in its face, or it may have a facing sheet of rubber or similar elastic composition which has been moulded to form (when inked) a printing surface of any desired pattern. Y

The type and ink bearing sector, and the smooth faced ink bearing sector, being, exchangeable one for the other in the machine, constitute the. means whereby the character of the printing performed by the machine may be varied, as well as the area covered by the printing done on the successive paper sheets or post cardsQor other, articles fed to it for printing} and this without necessarilychanging, or modifying the action of, any of the other machine parts. j

The best forms of apparatus at present known tome embodying my invention are illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawing, inwhich Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective viewof a simple hand-operated printing apparatusemploying one of the removable type-carrying sectors forming the principal novel feature of the invention Fig. 2 isa diagrammatic, side elevation of a slightly different form of such an apparatuswith parts broken away. V f

Fig. 3 is a perspective view, onan enlarged scale, of one form of such type carrying sector bearing removable type, and j Fig. 4 is a cross section on line 4--4 ofFig. 3'.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of such a sector provided. with stereotype platen for doing the printing, and

Fig. 6 is a cross section on line 6-6 of Fig. 5,

on an enlarged scale.

Throughout the drawing like reference char-. acters indicate like parts.

I is a hand crank fast on an overhanging shaft 2, on the other end of which is removably mounted a type-carrying sector, generally indicated at 3. "I'he-removable mounting and leleasable clutch for 'suchj sectormay be of the construction best shown in Fig.3, where shaft 2 has a circumferential groove-45 near its free end, with which a radially movablepin set in the 5 sleeve 34, carrying sector 3, may engage; said pin'being pressed toward said groove by plate spring'46 fastened tof'se'ctor 34: byscrews 49, 49. "The type-carrying sector 3 cooperates with the lower platen roll,5' orsector 5, carried by shaft 10 55 extending parallel toshaft 2, these two revoluble printing elements being caused to rotate in opposite directions by gearing 6, 6. A lowerplaten' sectori shown in- Fig. 2 may be' substituted for the' full faced roll 5 shown in Fig. 1. Two 15 parallel, straight bars 9 and 99lie in, or slightly above, a plane tangent to' -5:or 5 and, in cooperation with guides I22, make certain that the front end'of'each card-or sheet 2| to be printed is pushed into"the open space 26 (seeFig. 2) 20 left between the two sectors when they are in such positions that thecard can be grasped by the revolving sectors, orroll and sector, for the printing operation. {'4 is an'inking roll mounted on a shaft I4, which is above, and parallelto, 25 shafts 2 and 55; v Postcards 2| may be fed one at a time automatically' from a'stack by arevolving-feed drum 23, faced witha roughenedrubber band or bands 35, as'shown i'n Fig'. 2 and described in detail in 30 my above mentioned-patent. I23 is the vertical plate of aniagazineinwhich the stack of postcards-2| ma be held, andll24 indicates spring tongues supported by 'l23 and so adjusted there- 'onas-to permit only one card at a time to be fed 35 by drum 23intoguides 122. Suchfeeding action is assisted'by the springpressed roller I32. 7

In=the form'of 'type-carrying sector3 shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the curved face of the sector is provided with circumferentialfundercut grooves 8, 40 8, in 'which'separate type 1, 'l, maybe slid andretained by plate t .fastenedby screws 8'.- Thus the proper selected type may be assembled with which to print any desired message, or other legend, Mon thejpostcards' fl 'l'he lines of typed 45 matter would then extend circumferential of the sectorxface', which is;important 'as' producing a continuous feedinga'ction orithe card or sheet being printed.

In the modification shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the ink-carrying sector 3* comprises the stereotype plates l1, H, on the faces of which the various lines of type have been molded in the well known way, said plates being fastened to the sleeve 34 by screws [8. 55

In both forms the sleeve 34 has a radially extending slot 48 cut in its open end to receive the radially extending pin 41 set in shaft 2, whenever the sector is slid onto the free end of said shaft. Also, said sleeve is provided with a knurled projection H3 at its other end which can be conveniently grasped by the operator when pulling one sector off 'fromthe driving'shaft2, .or when installing another different sector thereon. The plates I1, l1, might be molded from a rubber composition or other plastic material which will set.

In operation the proper type for printing'the desired reading matter is s'et-in sector- 3, or cast 1 on a plate or plates I I, I 1, to befastened to sector 3 and the sector so prepared is slipped on the shaft 2, thereupon becoming automatically clutched thereto. The operator then turnsham dle I in the direction indicated by the arrow and, the type, inked by roll 4, are pressedupon the cards or sheets fed under guide bars Sand 99 by. drum 23, or by hand, :as said articles are pulled between the sectors by the rotation of the latter. The broken line positions of sectors 3 and 5, shown inFig. 2 indicate how successive cards 2| may be, grasped and printed one at a time as the apparatus isoperated, the bars 9 and 99 preventing the advancing front ends of said cards or sheets from being thrownltoo far upward to ensure their being properly sq grasped Y s The grooves shown'in the inner edges ofguide bars or rolls 9 and'99 serve to carry stencils-when the apparatus is changed over for-printing addresses on, the postcards, all in the manner described in my before mentioned Patents Nos. 1,909,910 and 1,916,564. r o. v Whenever the .type carrying-sector 3 is to be removed or replaced, it will be turned so that the arceshaped portion of its surface carrying the type Tor-the stereotyped type plate II will be out of register with the lower pressure platen 5, as otherwise the very considerable degree of pressure normally existing betweenthese opposed surfaces would preventthe sector being easily moved in or out. The pressure of the inking roll 4 on the sector 3 is much less than that of the lower platen 55,, so that the sector can, be pushed in or out while in contact withsaid inkingirroll, ll/Loreover saidroll-would be mounted on 'a swinging carriage, such-.asshowri in my Patent No; 1,922,: 553-, dated August 15,- 1933,1450 that'it could be easily lifted and held'awayfrom sector-3. Also, asthe type-carrying sector; and inking "rollare each carriediby an overhung? shaft journaled at the end nearest the gearing 6,: 6, '-as more fully shown and described irrmy above noted recently issued patents,lthe sector i i-being slipped onto, or pulledloff :of, :the free overhung end of shaft 2, as alsoindicated ,in Fig. of the present appli: cationidrawing, it is possiblefor the operator whilegrasping crank I gwithwhis right hand to conveniently slip. a sheet of paper on anenvelope to be printed and held in'his lefthand, sideways into the machine beneath; the typeecarryingsector whenever; its cutaway portion-26 is opposite platen 15, instead of having such sheets or en velopes fed endwise to the printing zoneby drum 23, Furthermore, thegfact thatthere are no rear journal bearings for the overhung shaft permits wide sheets of paper to be fed through the printing zone by drum 23, or otherwise.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a printing apparatus comprising a lower, revoluble platen, an inking roll locatedabove said platen and revoluble upon an overhung shaft parallel'to the axisthereof, arev'oluble overhung shaft journaled between th'e'two above-mentioned elements and extending parallel to the axes thereof, gearing for synchronously rotating said platen and said shaft, in opposite directions located at the journalbearing ends thereof, and means for combination, with said above described apparatus,' of a type-carrying sector adapted to be slid on and off said shaft and to rotate with the arcshaped portion of its surface in contact with said inking roll when on said shaft, and means for releasably locking said type-carrying sector to said shaft so as to rotate therewith; whereby said type-carrying sectorcanbe quickly removed'or replaced whenever its said arc-shaped portion of its surface'is'out of registrywith the surface of said lower platen by slipping it off of or on to the free end of said overhung shaft. 7 2. Acombihation such a'sdefined in claim 1, i which said type'carrying sector has a series of parallel undercut grooves in its curved surface, and 'a' plurality of type setin said grooves'and locked therein. I r v r 3. A combination such as defined in claim 1, in which said type carrying sector has a series of parallel undercut grooves in its curvedsurface running circumferentially thereof, and a plurality of type set in said-grooves and locked therein. 4. A combination such as defined in claim 1, in which *said type carrying sector comprises a curved stereotype plate fastened to the curved surface of said sectorl I I '5. In a printing" apparatus comprising a lower, revoluble platen, an inking roll located above said platen, and revoluble upo'n'an overhung shaft parallel to the axis thereof, a revoluble overhung shaft journaled between the two above-mentioned elements and extending parallel to .the axes thereof, gearing for synchronously rotating said platen and said shaft in opposite directions 10- cated at the journal bearing ends thereof, and a pair of parallel straight bars located in a plane tangent to the curved surface of said platen adapted to limit theupward movement of the front edge of any card or sheet being fed toward said platen, the; combination, with said above described apparatus, of .a type-carrying sector adapted to be slid on and off said shaft and to rotate with the arc-shaped portion of its surface in contactwith said inking roll when on said shaft, and means for releasably locking said typecarrying sector to said shaft so as torotate therewith; wherebysaidtype carrying sector can'be quickly removed or replaced wheneverfits said arc-shaped portionof its surface is out of registry with the surface of said lower platen by slipping it off or on tothe freeendof said overhung shaft.

HARMON P. ELLIOTT. 

